Tom Nakashima's Blog

I heard that pastry chef Anne Thornton, host of “Dessert First” on Food Network, has been fired for allegedly plagiarizing some recipes. Okay, that’s probably unbecoming… especially if you’re on TV. But good Lord, we’re not talking about passages from Shakespeare or Thoreau… these are cookies and stuff! And doesn’t every scrumptious recipe start out as some other recipe? What’s next… getting sued by the Pilgrims for that stuffing? If you refuse to eat anything from a plagiarized recipe… you’re gonna be hungry for a long ass time.

I love that Billy Crystal. Given some of the past Oscar shows that were utterly excruciating to watch, this one was pretty tight. Yeah, the show is a big deal… a glitzy celebration of Hollywood and all that we love about the movies. I’m guessing it takes months of worry, rehearsal and more rehearsal for Billy to get ready. But inevitably, some people hate everything about the show, about Billy and they’re having a cow about what everyone wore. With the twittersphere, what else would you expect? So next year Billy…. tell them to take a hike. Let someone else get hung out to dry… and Monday morning, they’ll all be asking… “Why didn’t you get Billy Crystal?”

I guess those grueling talks in Florida were worth the effort. We hear that a tentative deal has been reached between the Sacramento Kings and the city of Sacramento that will keep the team here.. with a new arena to be built. I like the sound of that. According to The Bee,Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson said, “It’s game over.” Which is code for… “I pray the City Council does the right thing.” Of course Anaheim may now jump in and offer free parking and shuttle rides to Disneyland. But for now, there’s hope. Nice work.

You may have seen this story about a pretty special bank transaction recently in Sweden. A customer made a withdrawal from a cash machine,…out came his money, then a mouse. Yikes. At first, all that was visible was his tail….which led to the rest of the body. Both the bank customer and the rogue rodent survived the ordeal. The critter declined comment. By the way, my bank charges an extra five bucks to withdraw a mouse.

Yes, it can get mighty cold in Austria. You may have heard about the Red Rooms Laufhaus in Vienna. Recently as temperatures hit minus 20 in the city, its owner opened his door to the homeless… and provided clean bedding, a hot shower and a hot meal. Oh, the Red Rooms is a brothel… and no, “other services are not included.” Apparently that’s only for Congressmen. Well, it beats sleeping in a dumpster. We’ll keep a light on for ya.

We do get aroused by the NFL Combine. Hey, we just got through the Super Bowl, didn’t we? Doesn’t matter. We want names, speculation, new irons in the fire.… anything that’ll give us hope for next season. And we are enthralled with the 40 yard dash times to the point of obsession. No, speed doesn’t guarantee anything, but we hang onto that number like it’s scripture. A guy could be implicated in a barroom murder… he could cheat seniors out of their life savings…. he could father nine children in six states… But if he can run a 4.29/40… he’ll be the talk of the combine.

Wat Misaka must be enjoying the non-stop coverage of the exploits of Jeremy Lin. Mr. Misaka, now nearly 90, made quite a mark in NBA history himself more than 60 years ago. An American born player of Japanese ancestry, he became the first person of colorto be drafted into what would become the NBA. This was 1947, when Japanese Americans were the hated minority in this country. My family had spent the war years in internment camps, but Wat Misaka had not, as he was born in Ogden, Utah. (for the most part, only Japanese Americans on the West Coast were imprisoned.) Playing for the University of Utah, Wat starred when his team won the NCAA Championship in 1944. After leaving school for a stint in the US Army, he returned to help Utah win the 1947 NIT Championship at Madison Square Garden. I imagine the New York fans liked what they saw. So much so that Wat Misaka was selected by the New York Knicks with their first pick in that year’s draft. Though he played in only three games before being cut, he not only instilled pride in the Asian American community… but fierce loyalty from his teammates. And now, 60-some years later, an Asian American makes headlines again… for the New York Knicks. You can learn more in a recent a documentary film,Transcending: The Wat Misaka Story, by Bruce Alan Johnson and Christine Toy Johnson.

So it’s hip these days to blur the line between beer and wine. Oh yes, the connoisseurs are fawning over combining grapes and grains into what amounts to beer/wine hybrids. Yeah, the beer has a lot more alcohol. Good for you. But stay out of my poker game. Maybe I’m in the minority here, but I like beer to taste like beer…. And wine should taste like wine. Beer is not Pinot Noir and it’s not Bourbon. It’s like combining enchiladas with gyoza. I love both.. just not together. That is all.

Drew Barrymore will turn 37 next week, but she’s been around so long, she seems older to me. I’ve always liked the quirky actress, although Forbes Magazine recently named her Hollywood’s most overpaid star. Among her box office bombs is the movie Lucky You, which six people saw, including me. Yes, it is the worst poker movie in the history of film…. but so what? A lot of celebrities are overpaid. Now, there’s better news for Drew, who’s announced her engagement to boyfriend Will Kopelman. She’s been married twice before, but not for very long. Her first marriage lasted two months…. her second, five months. So they are getting longer. Maybe this could be the one. I wish you well.

No, he’s not Yao Ming, the gifted 7-footer from China. He’s an American born basketball player who happens to be of Asian heritage. The last time I looked, there aren’t many of these fellows making headlines in the NBA. Oh, there are talented Asian players in the Rec League, in D-ball, maybe in Division IV. But this is the NBA. You know, the one with Kobe, Dirk Nowitzki and Dwight Howard. No, Jeremy Lin, after being let go by Golden State and Houston…. is now rocking the rafters in New York, no less. Yes, he will eventually come back down to earth, but for now…. I’m thrilled for you, kid. As I said… New York, no less.

I see that a delicatessen in Portland is offering something pretty romantic for Valentine’s Day….. at least for the meat lover in your life. How about a lovely bouquet of…. salami? Oh, and they don’t come cheap. Three long stemmed salamis will run you 75 bucks. If you want to splurge on a six-stem bunch… that’s an even 100 dollars. You know, nothing in this world says “I Love You” like…. “How ‘bout a slice?”

The leap second lives on… at least for another three years. At a recent conference in Geneva, things got a little contentious between some astronomers and the telecommunications nerds. At issue is whether Earth’s clocks and electronics should run on strictly machine time or the actual rotation of the Earth. The problem is that an Earth day isn’t precisely 86,400 seconds. It’s a little off because of the Earth’s rotation, making The Leap Secondnecessary every few years. A leap second has been added to official world clocks on 24 occasions since 1972, and it was decided that it will happen again this year. At 7:59:59 pm Eastern time on June 30th, the US Naval Observatory will skip a second to 8:00:00 pm. So for now, the leap second stays, at least until the next meeting of the International Telecommunication Union in 2015. They say the issue needs more study. More study? I think you guys have too much time on your hands.

In Giants Fandom, all things are possible. We know this because the euphoria of the 2010 World Series still lingers. Oh yes it does. So now that the glorious 49ers season is over, let’s get to real business. Giants pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training a week from tomorrow… finally. I know the Arizona Diamondbacks have gotten stronger. So have the Rockies. Actually, everybody believes they’ve improved their ballclub. We get it. All I know is… the Giants have to be better. How could they be worse? Their anemic offensefinished LAST in the National League in runs, RBIs, on-base percentage and hitting with runners in scoring position. With two out/runners-in-scoring-position… the Gigantes hit .173! That’s the worst average in the history of the game! Well, at least in the 37 years of that stat. I think you get the picture. So here they come…. Buster Posey, Brandon Belt, Angel Pagan, Freddie Sanchez, Tim Lincecum, Aubrey “I’m in shape” Huff, Panda, Melky Cabrera…. I can’t wait. As the Cincinnati Kid said…. “Okay, let’s see it.”

In Sports Talk Show Hell, we just can’t leave it alone. Who’s thebetter Manningnow? Is Peyton taking a back seat? We wanna know what you think. Really? I don’t. The Manning brothers have done something a lot of great quarterbacks will never have a chance to do, win the Super Bowl. I still think Peyton Manning in his prime might be the best quarterback/offensive coordinator in football. And is Tom Brady now a bum? Had Brady engineered a last second touchdown to win on Sunday, he’d be no less than the Second Coming. As it is, he gets to drown his sorrow by going night night with Gisele Bundchen. And Eli Manning, Peyton, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers… they all had help. No one wins the Super Bowl alone. Oh, and John Unitas never won a Super Bowl, and he did alright for himself. But for the moment, Eli Manning is the reigning king. Let him enjoy it.

And you thought our court system was going to the dogs. Recently the attorney for a couple of men charged with animal neglect called three Great Danes and a blue pit bull to the stand in a Portland courthouse to try and convince jurors the animals were in good shape. Although there was a little slobber, the canines maintained their right to remain silent. But the jury was not moved… the men were ultimately convicted of first-degree animal neglect. The doggies, now in good care… declined comment.

We understand that Demi Moore recently checked into rehab at the A-list friendly ultra-posh Cirque Lodge treatment center in Sundance, Utah. She’s reportedly being treated for an eating disorder and addiction issues, and she’s said to be on “total lockdown.” Well, we hope that she comes out of this down period healthy, happy and strong. By the way, what is total lockdown at an ultra-posh resort? Does that mean the Beluga caviar is only available to you until midnight, instead of 2am? Is your three hour full body massage cut down to 2:45 whether you like it or not?

For the NFL and NBC, it turns out Madonna was the least of their problems. If you didn’t know M.I.A. before, you know her now. I’m going out on a limb here, but it looks like she’s an attention whore who loved flipping off the camera during half-time. The NFL and the network had to immediately apologizefor the “inappropriate, obscene gesture.” You have a classic Super Bowl battle that goes down to the final play… Madonna is prancing around better than performers who are twenty years younger… and all some people want to talk about is this? And by the way, since the infamous Nipple-gate, TV is in delay… radio is in delay.. the whole freakin’ broadcast world is in delay. How did you guys miss this? Did the director say “Hey dump her!” And a guy goes…”Uhhh, which button is that?” Too late. This is why the #*(< we get Up With People.

All day tomorrow (10am to 5pm), you and the family can enjoy free or half-priced admission at 28 Sacramento area museums. The Sacramento Zoo and Fairytale Town in Land Park are offering half price tickets… and admission at the other 26 sites is FREE! It’s a great chance to experience the Capital City’s incredible wealth of art, history, science and wildlife. Among the participating venues… The Crocker Art Museum, the Aerospace Museum of California, Sutter’s Fort, the Sacramento History Museum and the world famous California State Railroad Museum. The 14th Annual Museum Day Event includes free ice cream at three locations provided by Umpqua Bank.

I recently caught the story of Beezow Doo-Doo Zopittybop-Bop-Bop,who was arrested in Madison, Wisconsin on a variety of charges… including carrying a concealed weapon and probation violation. Oddly enough, drugs were also involved. Court records indicate he legally changed his name to Mr. Zipittybop-Bop-Bop last fall. According to his Facebook account, when he’s not in trouble with the law he enjoys “eating,” “walking,” and “thinking.” He’s also single… so there’s that, ladies.

I don’t think Food Network star Paula Deen expected this much heat. Yes, her late revelation that she has Type 2 diabetes while hosting a show full of butter, fat, sugar and calories looks bad. We get it. And it got more embarrassingwhen someone photographed her eating a cheeseburger while on a cruise ship. Hold on… she wasn’t at a Weight Watchers meeting. She’s on a CRUISE SHIP… with all that food. What’s she supposed to order… the cottage cheese plate? Yuck. Please cut her some slack. Oh, and I’ll have curly fries with that.